Sea Glass
by orsinoslady
Summary: Rachel has reached her dreams of stardom. But, she's worked herself into the ground in the process. Forced to take a vacation, she ends up in a small coastal town for two weeks to unwind. There, she meets someone that can help her unwind in a different way than she had in mind. *major Puckleberry and some definite smut.*
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: **I apologize for what is sure to be weird formatting on this story. I only have my iPad with me and got struck with a very strong urge to write, so I had to download a writing app to accomplish this. So, sorry if there are a lot of typos or weird spacing throughout.

I envision this being a 2 part, possibly 3 part story. So this is just the beginning. Please let me know what you think!

I would also like to point out that this does take place primarily in Rachel's perspective, but as we go through, it transitions somewhat into a combo of hers and Puck's.

I do not own anything Glee related, I am only borrowing it for my own purposes.

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Coming from Ohio, Rachel had never been to the beach. Well, she had been to the beach. But not the ocean. Her fathers would sometimes take her to the Great Lakes in the summer for a vacation and she would relax on the beach there. But, she wanted to see the ocean and relax beside the waves.

For the last several years, Rachel had dedicated herself, heart and soul, to making her big musical dreams come true in New York. And it had definitely paid off. She won the lead in a major production and after 2 years in that role, earned a Tony nod and the Tony itself. Life was everything that she had ever wanted it to be. Except for the fact that her busy schedule had finally caught up with her. One evening, while preparing to go on stage in a leading role that was sure to earn her another Tony nod, she collapsed. After that, the director, her family, and her friends forced her to take 2 weeks off and get out of the city.

So she decided she'd come to the beach. She decided to rent a car and drive down from the city, not quite realizing how long it would take, but enjoying it nonetheless. Her friends, Kurt and Blaine, were talking about coming down for a long weekend right in the middle, so she wouldn't be alone for all of it. But she was definitely looking forward to having the time to herself. It wasn't until she arrived at her rental in Surf City, NC that she realized just how tired she was and how relaxed she already was. It was the middle of March, so there weren't a lot of people staying in the small town and she was able to get a house right on the beach for a steal compared to what it would rent out for in peak season.

After lugging her bags upstairs and into the master suite, Rachel walked through the house to familiarize herself with it and see if there was anything that the rental company had forgotten to provide. She noticed how nice the house was as she went from room to the floors were either hardwood or tile and that the counters were all granite. She assumed that it made for easier clean up, especially if it was a family that was staying here.

The furniture throughout the place was also very nice. Each room had its own theme with the furniture. The living room had a definite beachy vibe with the white wicker furniture and seascape paintings. The bedrooms all had shabby chic furniture in either white or black to off set whatever colors were on the wall. But, in Rachel's opinion, the best thing about the entire house was the balcony that was right off her bedroom that she could sit on and see the ocean. She already had plans to sit out there and sip tea in the morning.

Finishing her tour, she changed into a pair of old flip flops and made her way to the private beach access she had. She slowly made her way down to the sand and paused upon reaching it. The noise of the water startled her. Going to the Great Lakes, the water didn't have waves, so it was always very silent when she was on the beach there. But, obviously, that wasn't the case on this particular beach and she couldn't get over the sound of the waves crashing.

She stood there for several minutes soaking it all in. The smell of the salt in the air. The cries of the seagulls flying overhead. The screams of the few children out on the beach. She could almost swear that her stress and worries were just melting out of her.

Rachel looked around and noticed that there were a lot of people walking on the beach and decided that she would walk a little as well. She slowly made her way down to the water's edge, almost losing her balance in the sand that was closer to the dunes. When she got closer to the water, she gasped. There were thousands of shells littering the sand. She'd never seen so many in one place before and it was breathtaking. She pulled her phone out and snapped a few pictures to send to Kurt and her fathers.

She debated walking down the beach some to gather some shells, but her stomach growled and she giggled slightly, only now realizing how hungry she was. She decided she should make her way inside and finish unpacking her bags before going to get food from the store to make some dinner. As she reached the steps to go back to the house, she took one last look at the wide expanse of beach and just stopped herself from pinching her arm to make sure she was really here.

Much like she had planned the previous day, Rachel prepared tea after waking up and went to sit on the balcony while she sipped it. She decided that nothing could beat sitting on a porch, listening to the waves break right after sunrise. As much as she had fought taking the time off to take a vacation, she was definitely glad she had taken the time. She felt more relaxed this morning than she had in quite a long time.

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As she sipped her tea, she heard the sound of a sliding door open and glanced to her right just in time to see a man come out of the house next door. He was wearing nothing but a pair of shorts and Rachel couldn't stop her mouth from dropping open as she took in his very athletic physique. As she watched, he reached his arms over his head and gave a big stretch, allowing her to further appreciate the play of muscles that she could see from where she sat. Groaning as he released his stretch, he walked up to the rail on his own deck and leaned on it.

Thinking it was rude to sit there and watch him like some voyeur, Rachel reluctantly ripped her eyes away from him and back to the water, trying to find the same peace that she had previously before the man walked out. She realized very quickly that she was not going to be able to find the same solace that she had earlier because she was very aware of the handsome specimen that was on the deck next to hers.

She quietly sighed to herself and gathered her things before making her way inside. As she turned to close the door she noticed that the man from next door was turned slightly and seemed to be looking her way, but shook it off as paranoia and a lack of any sort of male companionship on her part in quite some time.

She still struggled sometimes to get out of the mentality she had in high school when she was told on a daily basis that she wasn't pretty and she wasn't good enough for any guy to want her. She knew that it wasn't true because she had had several very nice relationships with people since then, but that frightened 16 year old still came out when she was confronted with someone that she found to be wildly attractive. And, as much as she didn't want to admit it to herself, she found her next door neighbor to be very attractive.

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Over the next several days, Rachel would sit on her deck and then her neighbor would come out a little after she did. They would usually nod to each other and then ignore each other. Or, at least try to on her part. She would often find her eyes wandering in his direction only to snap them back to the front when she realized what had happened. She was so embarrassed by it, even if he had no clue she was scoping him out.

Just as she felt her eyes start to wander again, her phone started to ring, startling her out of her continued ogling. She quickly fumbled to answer it.

"Hello?" She asnswered, somewhat breathlessly because of her surprise at the call.

"Diva!" Kurt screeched into her ear. "Were you doing anything that you haven't told me since you sounded so breathless when you answered the phone?"

"Kurt! I can believe you would ask me that!" Rachel cried as she blushed furiously. It was no secret that Kurt had been trying for months to get her to get laid. He had even gone so far as to say that while she was on vacation she should try to find a hot surfer guy and use him to help her out.

"Well, a gay can dream, can't he?"

"Is there a reason you were calling me besides to ask me about my nonexistent sex life?"

Kurt sighed heavily into the phone before replying, "Fine, have it your way. Yes, I'm calling for a reason. I know Blaine and I were supposed to come down tomorrow to spend a long weekend with you, but it's looking like that's not going to happen."

Rachel started to interrupt him, but Kurt continued talking like she hadn't even said anything. "I know that was the main reason you went for a larger rental than you were thinking, but we've both had something come up at work and we're probably not going to be able to make it at all."

Rachel sighed, but didn't say anything. What could she say? She understood where they were coming from because if she were in their position, she would be doing the exact same thing. That didn't mean she liked the fact that they wouldn't be coming at all, but she accepted it.

They chatted for a few more minutes, the majority of it of Kurt asking Rachel if she'd actually left her rental and met some people and Rachel being evasive about how much she had stayed near the house. She was on vacation and if she didn't want to see people, then she wouldn't see people. But that didn't mean that Kurt felt the same.

She was finally able to get him off the phone and sighed in relief. She loved Kurt, but he could be exhausting to talk to. Of course, he definitely thought the same thing about her, so they were even on that score. Rachel was just debating gathering her things or head inside when someone asked, "So, friends giving you a hard time?"

Rachel jumped and looked to her right, right into the eyes of the hunk next door. She opened her mouth, but no sound came out. If Kurt had been there, he would have been crying from laughing so hard and trying to record this. Rachel always had something to say.

She cleared her throat, but before she could say anything, he continued, "I'm sorry. I couldn't help overhearing your conversation and thought about how similar to the one I had earlier this morning with my own friends."

Rachel laughed and, having finally found her voice, responded, "You wouldn't believe it. They're supposed to be coming down tomorrow to join me for a long weekend and now can't because of work. But he still pestered me about doing things even tough he won't be here to make me have fun."

The man laughed and said, "Yep, definitely sounds like my friends. I'm Puck by the way."

"Rachel. Is Puck really your name?"

Puck smirked at her and said, "well technically, yes. It's part of my last name and I've been called it since I was little. But my first name is Noah."

Rachel smiled and said, "I like that. Very nice."

Puck smirked at her and Rachel could feel herself react to that simple expression.

"Get yourself together Berry," she chided herself. "You're acting like you've never seen an attractive man before."

"So," Puck said, "what brings you down to this little town on the edge of the world?"

And, from that simple question, Rachel and Puck sat on their respective decks and got to know each other a little better. It turned out they were both at the beach for very similar reasons. Puck was a songwriter and was learning the producing side of the music business. He had signed his first major client last year and hadn't really stopped since he got involved. His bosses finally told him that he had to take some time off after him being discovered one to many time in his office in the clothes that he had been in the previous day, showing that he had never even gone home the night before. While he was a good employee and had done amazing things in his time with the company, his bosses were worried that he was working himself too hard.

Eventually Rachel's stomach let out a growl loud enough that Puck could hear it on his deck and they both laughed.

"What do you say to going to get some lunch with me?" He asked her.

Rachel didn't even have to think about it. "Meet you out front in five?"

At his nod, she quickly gathered her things and all but ran inside. She fired a quick text off to Kurt as she changed out of her yoga pants and long sleeve tee into some capris and a cute top. 7 minutes after they agreed to meet outside, Rachel was locking the door and making her way down to where Puck was waiting for her.

As she walked up to him, he smirked at her and held his hand out. "Noah Puckerman. Nice to meet you."

Rachel giggled as she accepted his hand, "Rachel Berry. It's nice to meet you as well."

"Shall we?" He asked as he stepped to side and let her walk in front of him.

He opened the passenger door for her and helped her in the car. After she was settled, he made his way to his side and got in. He looked at her and said, "I hope you like seafood."

Rachel assured him that she did and they were quickly off.

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Over the course of that weekend, Rachel and Puck spent quite a bit of time together. Since it was warm enough, they went on the beach several times in their bathing suits to sunbathe and, in her case, look for seashells. They also spent almost every meal together, even if breakfast was spent on 2 different decks each day.

Sunday evening after they had parted ways, Rachel called Kurt to get his opinion on the entire situation.

After chatting for a few minutes, Kurt made her cut to the chase. "Rachel, as much as I like just talking with you, I feel like there's a specific reason you called me."

Rachel sighed. "You know me too well!"

"I am your best friend," he pointed out. "I think that means I'm supposed to know you fairly well. So, what is it that has you so worked up this evening?"

It didn't take long for Rachel to tell Kurt about her days spent with "Noah" and how attracted she was to him.

"Diva, what's the problem then? You're attracted to him and he'd be crazy to not be attracted to you. So why aren't the two of you doing something together right now?"

Rachel blushed and was happy that Kurt couldn't see her. He would tease her mercilessly about her blush.

Kurt sighed. "Rachel. The two of you have spent every waking moment the past few days together. If he didn't like you on some level, he wouldn't be wasting his time. Take the bull by the horns and have your dirty way with him!"

If it was possible, Rachel's blush deepened even more. "Kurt, you know it's not that easy for me."

"Yes, I do. That's why I'm going to tell you what you should do tomorrow."

Kurt then spent the next 30 minutes outlining what Rachel was to do the next day to help her get Puck and to have her "dirty way with him."

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The next morning found Puck and Rachel following what had become "their" routine. They came on to their respective decks and struck up a conversation. The only difference this time was Rachel was wearing a short robe over a short nightgown. Not that Puck could see the nightgown, he could only see her in a short robe.

Rachel looked at him through the curtain of her hair when she was looking down and smiled when she saw that he was staring at her. She flipped her hair over her shoulder and smiled at him. "Anything you'd like to do today, Noah?"

Puck jumped a little at her words, looking startled that she had spoken. He cleared his throat and said, "Not really. You?"

"I was wondering if you wanted to come over here for breakfast this morning."

She saw Puck visibly gulp before nodding his head. She beamed at him and said that she would go unlock the door and he could come over whenever he was ready. As he watched her walk back inside, almost catching a glimpse of panty (he hopes), he groaned. He was wildly attracted to the Jewish goddess next door. How couldn't he be? She had a smokin' bod and while she talked almost too much for his tastes, she was very nice. His attraction to her had done nothing but grown over the last few days that he had spent with her. He definitely wanted to make a move, but she didn't strike him as the hit it and quit it type. She struck him as more of committed relationship with rose petals and candles and shit. Things he didn't do.

But he couldn't help it if he stuck around on the off chance that something might come of their acquaintance. It was this thought that propelled him inside to pull on a shirt before making his way over to Rachel's rental.

Since she told him that the door was unlocked and he could just come in, he didn't bother knocking before opening the door. Because of that, Rachel had no idea he had walked in and he was greeted with a wonderful view of her long legs and the bottom curve of her ass as she reached into a cabinet that was almost too high for her to reach.

He could see her struggling to reach something so he made his way up behind her and asked, "What're you trying to reach midget?"

Rachel gasped and turned around quickly, clutching her hand to her chest as she looked at him. He smirked down at her and Rachel felt herself going a little weak in the knees at the expression. They then both seemed to realize the position they were in, her leaning against the counter and he boxing her in. Rachel looked at his eyes, which seemed darker than she remembered and noticed that they flicked down to her lips before coming back up to meet her eyes.

Rachel decided to take the initiative and closed the distance between their lips, placing a soft kiss on his lips. She started to draw back, but before their lips could part, Puck leaned forward and initiated a much more demanding kiss. He leaned into her, causing her to bend backwards slightly from the force of the kiss and ran his hands up her arms to bury themselves in her hair.

Rachel's hands weren't idle either, using the opportunity to run her hands underneath his shirt to his back. Puck licked at her lips in question and groaned when she opened her mouth and all but sucked his tongue in her mouth. They stood there for what felt like hours to Rachel but was really only a few minutes before Puck pulled back, panting as he leaned his forehead against hers.

She took a few seconds to regulate her breathing and looked at Puck through her lashes. After several seconds, Puck pulled away from her and moved across the kitchen to lean against the other counter. Rachel was definitely confused. The kiss they just shared was out of this world and she was struggling to understand why he had moved away. Before she could ask though, Puck said, "So, what's for breakfast?"

Rachel stared at him, trying to figure out what he was trying to accomplish with this abrupt change. "What?" She asked, dumbly.

Puck chuckled and repeated his question. She honestly didn't know how to respond to his question. Yes, she had invited him over for breakfast and that was a legit invitation that she had given him, but after the kiss they had just shared, breakfast was not on her mind anymore.

Instead of answering, she walked across the room and leaned up to kiss him forcefully on the lips, smiling to herself when he groaned as her hand "accidentally" brushed over the bulge in his pants.

She pulled back slightly and purred, "I thought you could have me for breakfast."

Rachel did an inner eye roll with that line since she felt it was cheesy, but she knew Kurt would approve of her forward ness and it was obvious Puck approved by his pulling her back in for a kiss.

Her question must have opened the flood gates with him because the next thing she knew, he had turned them around and lifted her onto the counter, never breaking their kiss. She wrapped her arms around his neck and sighed into his mouth when he ran his hands lightly up her leg and around to her butt. He lightly caressed her before bringing one of his hands back to the front and lightly sweeping them over her panty covered private area. She gasped at the light touch and jerked a little.

Using that as encouragement, he went back and did a more purposeful swipe and pressed against her clit. Rachel moaned low in her throat as she felt the pressure. She took one of her hands and lightly touched his chest before moving down to his belt buckle. When she started to undo it, he stopped her and put her arms back around his neck. Before she could pour and ask why he stopped her, her pulled her into another kiss and moved her underwear aside before inserting two fingers in her slit.

Rachel pulled away from the kiss to gasp and try to catch her breath as he started his assault on her lower parts. While his two fingers were busy on the inside, his thumb was also applying pressure on the outside and she could feel herself quickly building towards an orgasm.

Puck could feel the tell-tale tightening of her walls and moved to her neck, lightly sucking on it as he curled his hands in a come hither motion inside her. That was what she needed to push her over and her mouth opened in a silent scream as her walls clamped down on his fingers. As she started to come down, Puck stepped back far enough to rip her panties off and drop to the floor to start his oral assault. Since she was so sensitive from before, it didn't take Puck too long to work her up to the edge again.

Before she could tumble off the cliff into oblivion again, he pulled back and stood up. "Where's your bedroom?" he panted as he picked her up.

She pointed him towards where it was and pulled him in for a kiss, not caring that she could taste herself on his lips. Because he couldn't really see with Rachel attacking his lips, they bumped into quite a few things on the way to her room, but they eventually made it and tumbled onto the bed together when his knees hit the edge.

Rachel used the opportunity to push him up slightly and pull off his shirt before going to work on his pants. Puck wasn't idle in this time either. He all. It yanked her robe off and groaned when he saw the nightgown she was wearing under it. It was a deep purple and hit at about mid thigh. It had tiny little straps holding up teeny tiny cups that barely covered her breasts. As much as he wanted to appreciate the view that was before him, he wanted her naked even more.

He pulled the gown off just as she got his pants off. Before he could lean down and attach himself to one of her breasts like he wanted to, she pushed him so that he was laying on his back with her above him. She kissed him lightly before quickly making her way down his body and engulfing him in her mouth. Puck's eyes rolled back in his head and his hands fisted in her hair as she sucked him. He felt his tip hit the back of he throat and his eyes came back into focus and he looked down at her. She had an impish look on her face as he felt her throat relax even farther and his dick go even farther into her mouth.

He knew that if she continued with that, he would blow his load before they got to the main event. He nudged her and pulled her up for a quick kiss. "Condoms?" he muttered in between kisses.

She pulled back and got up to walk to her suitcase. She had no idea that they were in there until Kurt told her he had packed some "just in case." She was very thankful that he did. She grabbed the box and when she turned around, she noticed Puck leering at her from the bed. She giggled and opened the box to pull out a condom as she made her way back to the bed. She threw it at him and set the box on the side table before crawling back onto the bed.

By this point, he was wrapped and more than ready to show her an amazing time. But Rachel had other ideas. Before he could try and flip them, she kissed him and sank down on his length. They both let out moans at the feeling. She gave herself a few seconds to adjust to the feel of him inside her before she started to move. She started out slow, almost teasing both of them with her movements.

However, that didn't last long.

Puck reached up and placed his hands on her hips, guiding her in a grinding motion that left them both breathless and Rachel quickly skyrocketing towards the orgasm she had been denied earlier.

Able to read her already, Puck told Rachel to get on her hands and knees. As she complied, Puck tweaked each of her nipples and lightly tapped her clit as he lined himself up. He paused with his tip just barely inside her and teased her lightly with it, making her squirm and eventually say, "Are you going to actually fuck me or just tease me?"

Even though he'd only known Rachel for a short time, he knew she didn't curse at all. So for her to drop the F-bomb so casually, it was a pretty big deal. "All right," he grunted as he slammed into her, causing her to gasp and pitch forward. "You asked for it."

As he drew back and then slammed in again, Rachel mewled and tried to find something to hold onto so that she stayed grounded and didn't float away like she felt she was going to do. Puck picked the pace up slightly and Rachel's orgasm suddenly overtook her, causing her walls to clamp down on Puck and draw his orgasm out of him.

Once he was spent, he pulled out and barely managed to get the condom off and into the trash can before collapsing on the bed next to Rachel, who looked like she had passed out. Just when he was about to tap her, she opened an eye and looked at him with a lopsided smile on her face. "When can we do that again?" She asked.

Puck laughed and Rachel quickly joined him. "After that performance, I'm going to need food before I can do a repeat."

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Once that line had been crossed with them, Rachel and Puck found that they couldn't get enough of each other. Whenever they were alone, they found themselves in bed or somewhere in one of their rentals having sex. Rachel had never been one to have a ton of sex and especially not when she wasn't in a relationship, but she felt like she couldn't get enough of him.

And, as the week wore on and it came time for them both to head to their respective homes, she felt herself becoming more desperate to get her fill of him before they parted ways.

It would seem that Puck felt the same. He found himself trying to memorize everything about her as their time to split came closer and closer. He tried to remember her laugh when she found something funny and the breathy little moan she made when he was trying to get her worked up. He even took a few pictures of her without her knowing just so he'd have something to remember her by when he returned home to New York on Saturday. Little did he know, Rachel had done the same thing.

As the Saturday of their departure dawned, Puck and Rachel found themselves moving together in a slow dance on her bed, each of the, trying to burn the other into their memories. They hadn't talked about what would happen after this vacation, if they'd stay in touch. They each knew the likelihood of that happening as being very slim. They instead chose to focus on their last few moments together and to savor it while they could.

Once they were each spent, they got up and slowly got dressed, each throwing looks of longing at the other, but each also refusing to break the silence and knowledge that they would be parting ways in just a little while. They ate breakfast in silence and each packed their respective cars. Once packed, they looked at each other before Puck pulled her into a tight hug. "I know we'll probably never see each other again," he hoarsely whispered in her ear, "but, I definitely hope I do."

Rachel giggled and said, "Same here. Maybe we'll get lucky though."

Puck laughed humorlessly and helped Rachel into her car. He waved to her as she backed out of the driveway and watched her car until it was out of sight. He then made his way to his own rental car so he could get on the road for the long ride back to his home that would be full of the amazing woman he met while on vacation.


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N:** Here is the second installment. I see this as probably being the last, which is why I have marked it as finished. However, if the mood strikes, I might put up a third one. I hope you enjoy!

**Disclaimer:** I own nothing with Glee.

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The vacation to Surf City had done Rachel wonders. She came back to New York rejuvenated and ready to continue her leading role on Broadway. What she wasn't ready for was on those days where she didn't have a show or when she was at her apartment by herself after everyone had left was the thoughts of Puck that consumed her. Even though they hadn't spent much time together, she had felt a connection with him and not just because he was also Jewish. It was more because they were able to talk about so many things and she wasn't worried about what he thought of her or trying to impress him. That's not something that she was able to boast about some of her other relationships.

In those moments, she found herself wishing that she had found more out about him and gotten his number so they could keep in contact. But then she would remember that the likelihood of them actually staying in contact was slim.

Rachel shook herself to knock herself out of those depressing thoughts and looked at herself in the mirror. She was trying to decide between two outfits for dinner tonight with Kurt and Santana. After graduating from high school together, they had decided to take New York by storm together. Upon arriving in the city, they got a one room apartment in Bushwick that they worked hard to make into a home for the three of them. Luckily it was big enough that they were able to make 3 decent sized bedrooms and have a good sized common space.

They lived there all through college and a year after. Rachel finally got to the point that she couldn't handle living with the two of them anymore and decided to move out into her own apartment in a nicer area that was closer to her work. Santana and Kurt were upset that she wanted to move out, but they eventually came to understand her reasons for wanting to do so.

She found an apartment in a nicer area of the city that she could easily afford with her salary from the plays she did and the side waitressing job she had and that wasn't too far from the theaters in general, so she had short train rides to everything. She did have to have help from her fathers every so often, but she just learned to look past it and worked even harder to make it big on Broadway.

Her hard work eventually paid off and she landed her first big role as Belle in _Beauty and the Beast_. It wasn't easy for her since she was the newbie, but she continued to work her hardest and proved that she was meant to be on that stage and have the role of Belle.

The dinner she was going to tonight was a celebration of another successful run of a Broadway show and Kurt releasing a new line of clothing for his brand, Klaine. They were going to a new restaurant that had opened a few blocks over from her restaurant, Iris, and Rachel knew there would be a lot of people there, hence the indecision about her outfit. She was torn between two dresses: a simple black number or a slinky looking purple one.

Already thinking of the comments she'd get if she wore the black one, Rachel decided to wear the purple one. She slipped it on quickly, checked to make sure it wasn't indecent anywhere, slipped into a pair of black heels and looked at herself. _"I look pretty hot,"_ she thought to herself as the buzzer rang, signaling Santana and Kurt were downstairs.

With one last look, she grabbed her clutch and hurried out of her apartment to the front door. Her fathers hadn't liked her getting an apartment on the first floor of her building, but she liked that she got a little terrace area that she had a small table with two chairs for enjoying the warm and sunny days in the spring and summer. As an allowance, she had anti-theft tabs put on her windows so that if anyone wanted to really get in, they'd have to work pretty hard to accomplish it.

She wrenched the door open and smiled when she saw Santana and Kurt. "Hey guys!" she cried as she made her way down the stairs.

"Berry!" Santana gasped. "You are hot! You're making me wish you were a lesbian."

Rachel giggled while Kurt agreed. "Come on! We have a reservation for 20 minutes from now and we don't want to be late! Blaine should already be there, but that doesn't mean anything in this town!"

They chattered as they rode in the cab to the restaurant. Upon arriving, they found Blaine pretty quickly in a round both by the bar. As they scooted into the booth, a waitress came by to get their drink order.

As they looked over the menu, Rachel took the opportunity to look around the restaurant. Since it was new, it was really busy and there were a lot of people waiting for a table. The restaurant was decorated very nicely, in fairly mute colors and there were lights and plants placed in strategic places that helped to make the large space feel intimate in the different areas.

She turned back to her friends as the waitress dropped their drinks off and took their appetizer orders. She took a quick sip and turned to Blaine, who was talking to her. "So, Rach, you've never really told us about the guy that you met at the beach."

Rachel's eyes bugged slightly and she sputtered. "Please," Santana said as she looked at her. "I know you're going to try to come up with some shitty excuse about why you don't want to tell us about it, but you've been back for months now without a word to anyone besides Kurt here and the only reason he knows anything is because you called him for advice! Which I am still angry about by the way."

Rachel couldn't help the giggle that escaped as Santana finished her rant and took a sip of her drink. "It's not that I don't want to tell you guys, but it was only two weeks and we'll never see each other again."

Kurt scoffed. "Diva, please. It might have only been two weeks, but if I know you, you're agonizing over every little part of it."

Rachel sighed and looked down at the table. She tossed her hair over her shoulder and looked at her friends. "Fine, what do you want to know?"

Kurt and Santana grinned at each other before bombarding her with questions. Rachel started laughing as they kept interrupting each other trying to find out about Puck from her. "Guys, I'm happy to answer any questions you have, but you have to go one at a time."

"Shut it Hummel," Santana told Kurt as he opened his mouth to ask a question. "I get the first question."

~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~

Across the restaurant, Puck was just getting seated at his table with his half-brother Jake and best friend Sam. The waitress came by and they ordered a round. As they settled in, Jake clapped him on the back. "Dude! I can't believe you signed that dude I showed you on YouTube! I told you he was awesome!"

Puck laughed and brushed off Jake's arm. "You did, so I have you to thank for the artist that will hopefully help me become a producer full time."

"Well, I, for one, am glad you got yourself out of that funk," Sam told him as their drinks were brought by. "You have been so weird since you came back from your vacation. You didn't even seem like you were really here."

"Definitely," Jake agreed, taking a swig of his beer. "I was about ready to boot you out of the apartment because of your moping. Or force you to get laid since it seems like you haven't gotten any in a very long time."

Puck scoffed. "Whatever. Maybe I'm just more discreet now than I was before."

Jake laughed. "Dude, if I had a dollar for every time I've walked into the apartment with you fucking someone where I can see or hear it, I would be able to live by myself."

Sam grimaced at Puck. "Dude, really? That's kinda gross."

Puck rolled his eyes. "It doesn't matter. What does matter is I just signed someone that is sure to be the next big thing and we are here to celebrate that and hopefully get some pussy."

Jake and Sam shouted their approval and clinked their beer bottles against each other before taking a swallow.

"So," Puck said as he leaned back and surveyed the crowd. "Who is our first victim?"

Sam and Jake leaned back as well and looked over the crowd as well. After several moments of silence, Sam broke it by saying, "Hey, look at that booth over by the bar. Has two guys and two girls in it."

It took Puck a minute to find it, but when he did, he felt himself stiffen. "Dude, good spot. I got dibs on the Latina one."

Puck barely heard him as he looked at the other girl in the booth with them. It was hard to tell from a distance, but the tilt of her head and the shape of her body that he could see reminded him of Rachel, the girl that stole his heart while he was on vacation. _"But, that's impossible_,"he thought to himself as he looked at her closer.

At that moment, the girl turned her head and Puck was able to get a view of her face as she laughed at something one of her friends said. He abruptly stood and ripped his wallet from his pocket. He threw some money on the table and said, "Thanks for bringing me out, but I just remembered that there's some stuff that I need to take care of for tomorrow."

As he pushed his way through the crowd, he could hear the two of them yelling, "Dude, what the hell?"

~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~

Rachel was trying to catch her breath right after Kurt finished telling how he made one of his fabric providers cry. As Kurt launched into the next part of his tale, Rachel was distracted by yelling from across the restaurant. She glanced that way and saw two guys yelling at someone who was pushing his way through the crowd. She couldn't see who it was, but the two left at the table seemed to be very upset with the guy.

She shrugged it off and turned back to Kurt. As she listened to him imitate one of his interns, he fell quiet and everyone turned to look at two guys that had walked up to the table. While neither were her type, Rachel could admit that they were rather attractive. One was blonde with a large mouth and the other was at least partially black.

"Hey," the blonde one stated. "I'm Sam and this is Jake. Mind if we join you?"

They all looked at one another and scooted over to accommodate them. "So, me and my boy were sitting across the restaurant and saw these two hot mamas and decided that we had to come over here and introduce ourselves," Jake said as he slipped his arm over Santana's shoulders.

Santana started laughing and shrugged Jake's arm off her shoulder. "Not that you're not attractive," she told him as she tried to control her laughter, "but you don't have the right equipment to make me happy."

Rachel, Kurt and Blaine laughed at the look on Jake's face as he realized what exactly Santana meant. "All right then," he said as he tried to figure out what to say.

Santana laughed and said, "Don't worry about trying to save face. It happens all the time. Brittany and myself have gotten used to it and have learned to just be flattered by it."

Jake nodded and looked around. "Oh!" Rachel exclaimed, "We're being kind of rude, but I'm Rachel, this beautiful Latina is Santana. And these two wonderful guys are Kurt and Blaine."

They all nodded at each other and the waitress dropped off their appetizers and asked if they wanted another round. Everyone said they did and as she walked off, they all looked at each other. "So…" Sam started, "have any of you been here before?"

"No, we haven't," Kurt answered. "We decided to come because I met the owner earlier this week when he came to view my line and myself and Rachel have something to celebrate."

"You do? What's that?" Jake asked.

"I just launched a new line with my clothing and Rachel just finished another successful run on Broadway."

"You sing?" Sam asked.

Rachel nodded and sipped her drink. "And dance and I can play some piano, but that's only so I can accompany myself when I practice."

"Our friend who was here earlier before he bailed is in the music business," Sam told her. "If you're interested in breaking out of Broadway, you should totally look him up."

"Thank you, Sam," Rachel said, beaming at him. "I'm not very interested in breaking into that aspect of the music industry, but I will keep it in mind should I ever tire of being on stage."

Sam just blinked at her, trying to process what she said. Santana leaned over and said, "Just nod. She has a tendency to spout off a lot in a short time that not everyone understands."

"Noted."

Jake cleared his throat and said, "You said a celebration, right? Well, let's celebrate!"

They all cheered and clinked their drinks together before taking big gulps.

~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~

The next morning, Rachel woke up to sunlight streaming through her window right into her face and her head feeling like it would split open. "Ugh," she groaned as she rolled away from the light. "I am never drinking like that again," she muttered to herself.

She let herself lay there for a little while longer and willed her headache to go away. After being entirely too lazy, in her mind, Rachel forced herself out of bed and into her bathroom. She splashed water on her face and started an abbreviated morning routine. She didn't have to worry about being at the theater since she was done with this production, but that didn't mean she was going to sacrifice her routine. Since it was obviously nice outside, Rachel decided she'd ride the train to Central Park and go for a job through it. With her demanding schedule, she usually had to settle for something at the gym for her morning run, so it would be refreshing to be outside exercising.

She quickly dressed before grabbing her subway card and the things she needed for her run and briskly walking to the nearest subway entrance. She swiped her card and quickly made her way to the required line. Being from Lima, Ohio and not being used to the hustle and bustle of a big city, she had been terrified the first time she had ridden the subway anywhere. But, now that she had lived in New York for years, she had come to appreciate the ease of the subway and relished her time on it as it was generally uninterrupted time for her to do things.

She hopped on and used the brief ride to get her music ready to run. Most people probably assume that she listened to Broadway musical numbers while running or working out in general, but Rachel found that she preferred songs that had very catchy beats to do any sort of exercising. She listened to a lot of top 40 as well as some of the more popular dance songs. The faster the beat, the more she enjoyed it.

Seeing that her stop was next, she moved to the door and was one of the first ones off. She quickly made her way to street level and fought the tide of people coming down. Even though it was mid-morning, there was a lot of people out and about. She found that there usually was in New York.

She reached the edge of the park and moved off the main path to do some light stretching before starting a slow jog with the other runners out. As she started her run, Rachel thought about what her next move would be career wise. She had several auditions written down for the upcoming week, but she wasn't quite sure she wanted to audition for another production so soon. As much as she loved the spotlight and everything that came with it, Rachel couldn't help feeling burnt out from it already. Considering how young she is, that wasn't necessarily a good thing.

Rachel made a mental note to discuss alternative things to do for a while with her manager as she rounded a curve in the road. Up ahead she noticed that there was a guy who had stepped off the road and was doing a series of what looked like stretches. As she ran past, he was bending over and she couldn't help but ogle his ass. While she might not necessarily be open to anything romantic, that didn't mean she couldn't look and appreciate a fine male specimen.

She sighed as she had to look away and thought about Puck. Before she could allow herself to become caught up in thoughts of him again, Rachel shook herself and turned around, making her way back to where she started. She figured she would finish out her run, buy a bottle of water and then do some yoga in the park before heading home for a relaxing day by herself in her apartment where she would not, under any circumstances, think of Noah Puckerman.

A few minutes later, Rachel realized that the man she had been staring at before was running in front of her and she mentally cheered as she realized she could stare at him now without being embarrassed as much since he was running in front of her and she could look nowhere else. Obviously.

Much too quick for her liking, she reached where she started her run and slowed to a walk, going up to a vendor and getting her water. While opening it, she moved to a shady patch of grass, gulped some water and got herself ready to stretch. She spent the next 30 minutes moving through various poses that she had been taught to help her with post workout soreness and mental clarity.

Once finishing her last pose, she allowed herself to fall onto the grass and finish her water. After she finished it, she threw it into the recycling, checked that she had everything and made her way back to the subway.

After swiping through, Rachel went to the right to make her way to the line she needed when she bumped into someone.

"Oh my gosh! I'm so sorry!" she cried as she backed away.

"Not a big deal," the person said.

Rachel was about to walk away as they separated, but paused as she realized she recognized the voice of the person she had bumped into. She turned around and met the very surprised eyes of someone who recognized her as well. "Noah?" Rachel asked, her voice trembling.

"Rach?' Puck asked, just as disbelieving.

They stood there in silence for several moments, a sea of people bumping them and making rude comments as they were forced to go around these two people that had been struck seemingly dumb by this sudden reacquaintance.

Rachel snapped out of it as someone forcefully pushed her and she tumbled forward, losing her balance in the process. Puck moved quickly and caught her before she could hit the floor and moved them to the side.

"You live in New York?" she asked once they were out of the way.

Puck sighed and said, "Yeah. I guess you do too?"

Rachel nodded and they lapsed into silence. She bit her lip nervously before blurting out, "You would think that we would have figured out that we lived in the same city when we were in North Carolina."

Puck laughed and rubbed the back of his neck uncomfortably. "Yeah, you would think that, wouldn't you?"

They lapsed into another uncomfortable silence before Puck broke the silence. "Do you want to go to a Starbucks or something? Get some coffee or tea and catch up?"

Rachel didn't have to hesitate before accepting. They made their way back up the stairs and to the exit stiles, swiping their respective cards to get out. Once on street level, Puck grabbed her hand and tugged her after him as he pushed through the lunch traffic that was suddenly flooding the streets.

After a few minutes of brisk walking, they reached a Starbucks and they ducked inside. Luckily it looked like the lunch rush hadn't hit yet and the line was short. "Go grab a table while I get our drinks," Puck told her. "What do you want?"

"Tea with lemon and honey please," she told him as she inched towards a table by the window. He nodded and she quickly claimed the table.

Just as Puck made his way to their table with their drinks, it seemed like the entirety of New York descended onto that particular Starbucks and they were forced to scoot their chairs close together just to be heard over the chatter of people giving their orders, talking on their phones and chatting with their friends.

"So," Rachel started, "I'm still trying to figure out how it is that we never figured out that we both lived in the same city."

Puck nodded and said, "The only thing I can think of is that we both just wanted to have something that wasn't 'more' or whatever you call it, so we purposefully avoided the entire topic."

Rachel nodded her understanding and sipped her tea. "Even so, I wouldn't have minded knowing that you lived here, you know?" she timidly added.

Puck didn't say anything, just sipped her coffee and looked around the shop. When he didn't say anything immediately, Rachel started to fidget and think of ways she might be able to extricate herself from this situation. This obviously was making him feel very awkward and she was starting to feel that way herself since he seemed to be trying to find a way to get rid of her.

Before she could say anything though, Puck's shoulders slumped and he said, "I'm sorry I'm being such a douche. I just kinda surprised is all."

Rachel looked at him but didn't say anything, waiting for him to continue. After a few beats, he did. "What we had in North Carolina was fucking awesome. Seriously. Every second of it was heaven and I would give anything to go back and continue it. I'm just a little shocked that I've run into you is all. I thought I saw you last night and freaked out, leaving my brother and a friend stranded at a restaurant we had gone to and then to literally bump into today, I'm a little out of sorts."

Rachel's brow furrowed. "You think you saw me last night? What do you mean?"

"I went to a new restaurant, Iris, with my brother Jake and friend Sam. We were sitting there, talking about the artist I had signed and how we were looking to maybe get lucky when Jake pointed a table out that had a girl that made me think of you. When I realized that the girl in the booth looked legit like you, I freaked out and blew them off."

Rachel looked at him with her mouth open. "You were at Iris last night?"

After his confirming nod, Rachel started laughing so hard she had trouble catching her breath and was starting to get stares from some of the other people in the shop.

"Hey, Rach. Want to tone it down some?"

Rachel struggled to catch her breath and contain the giggles that kept escaping. "I'm so sorry Noah. But I can't believe this! I met your brother and Sam last night. After you left, they came over to our table to hit on myself and my friend Santana. They weren't successful, but myself and my friends ended up spending the rest of the evening with them."

"You're shitting me," Puck muttered.

"So, Noah, since we have 'reconnected'," Rachel said, "what do you think about maybe grabbing some dinner tonight?"

"Rach, I would love to, but I can't."

The smile on Rachel's face fell when she heard his words and she felt like a fool. She knew it was too good to be true. She started to gather her things and said, "That all right, I understand. I'm glad we got to see each other again."

As she started to walk away again, Puck reached out and grabbed her hand. "You didn't let me finish. I can't because I have a business dinner tonight. But I am free tomorrow night."

Rachel beamed at him and sat back down. "Did you really think I was going to just let you walk away from me without exchanging numbers or something?"

Rachel shrugged. "I don't know. I'm not very good at this whole romance thing."

"Don't worry babe," Puck said as he scooted his chair closer, "that's what I'm here for."

~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~

The next day of Rachel's life was the longest and shortest of her life. She used her time to pamper herself and get ready for her date with Puck and even after doing everything she could, she still felt like she didn't have enough time to prepare herself for this.

Yes, they had had sex together already, so that took some of the expectation out, but that didn't mean she wasn't nervous. When she and Puck had gotten together at the beach, they did so thinking they would never see each other ever again. To suddenly be thrown back into something with him, Rachel wasn't quite sure what to think of anything now.

Puck said he was going to take her to a diner that he really liked, so she didn't need to dress up too much. Rachel was thankful for that because she thought that if she had to really concentrate on an outfit, she would probably have a meltdown. As it was, picking an outfit that was appropriately nice but also casual enough was enough to make her want to pull her hair out and call Kurt. But Rachel refused to because she didn't want to unknowingly jinx whatever this thing with Puck was or might be.

Glancing at the clock, Rachel realized she needed to get her butt in gear and quickly picked out a sundress and some sandals. After dressing and checking herself in the mirror, Rachel practically sprinted to her front door and gathered her things. Thankfully she was meeting Puck at the restaurant and she knew she would be early, but she was moving too slow for her own schedule and she was panicking.

When she dropped her keys for the second time while trying to get her door locked, Rachel leaned her forehead against her apartment door and took a deep breath. _"Rachel, get yourself together,"_ she chided herself. _"Yes, this is a dinner with someone that you are obviously attracted to and have obvious chemistry with, but you did stuff like this all the time with him in Surf City. This is no different from what you did with him there."_

After taking another calming breath, Rachel was able to lock her door without further incident and make it to the restaurant with 10 minutes to spare, but still after Puck had already arrived. She saw him from the street and smiled at him as she made her way up the steps to the door. Before opening it and walking in, she shook herself slightly to rid herself of nerves and went inside.

~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~

Three hours after their date started, Puck escorted Rachel to her front door. As she paused at the door, Rachel stood a step above Puck, putting them at eye level. "I had a wonderful time," she whispered.

"So did I," Puck said.

Rachel licked her lips and asked, "Do you want to come in?"

Puck paused for a second before nodding. Rachel bit her lip and smiled before turning to unlock the outside door and leading him inside. Puck followed her down the hallway and waited behind her as she opened her door.

Rachel was thankful that Puck didn't seem to be paying attention to her, so he didn't notice how her hands were shaking as she unlocked it. She dropped her stuff on the table by the door and stepped aside to let him in. She locked the door behind them and led him into the living room.

"Home, sweet home," she said as he took in the place.

"It's nice," he said as he looked at everything before looking at her.

"Thanks," she whispered.

Puck walked a little further in and went to look at the pictures she had on her wall. She had pictures of all the people who were important to her: her dads, her friends, coworkers and some of her idols. Puck nodded as he looked at them, as if they were telling him something before turning back to her.

"Would you like anything to drink?" Rachel asked as she worried the hemline of her dress.

"Nope," Puck said as he walked towards her.

"Are you sure?"

"I'm positive Rachel. There's only one thing here I want right now."

Rachel gasped as Puck reached her and pulled her towards him. Rachel tilted her head up to meet his kiss. As their lips met, Rachel threaded her arms around his neck and he wrapped his around her waist. They stood there for who knows how long before Puck pulled back and looked at her.

"I've wanted to do that since I saw you yesterday."

"Me too," Rachel agreed as she tried to catch her breath.

"There's so much more that I want to do right now, but if you don't want to do anything else, you need to stop me now because if you don't, I'm going to show you just how much I missed you."

Rachel sucked in a breath at his words. She took a step back, took his hand and led him back to her bedroom. Once inside, she smiled coyly at him and tugged him to her. They met in another fiery kiss, but neither of them were shy this time about exploring the others body.

Rachel wrapped her arms around his waist and rubbed her hands up and down Puck's back while Puck put his arms back around Rachel and used the opportunity to inch her dress up until it was mostly bunched in his hands. He pulled back and whispered, "Put your hands up."

Rachel obeyed and he pulled her dress off. He groaned as he took her in. She had foregone a bra with it, so she was only wearing a pair of nude panties.

"I hardly think this is fair, Noah," Rachel said as she reached for him and tugged on his shirt.

"All you gotta do is ask baby."

With that, he pulled his shirt off before toeing his shoes off and ridding himself of his pants. While he had been stripped, Rachel had taken off her shoes and laid down on the bed. Puck growled at her as he stalked towards the bed.

"Are you ready for this?" Puck asked as he crawled up her body.

Rachel giggled. "That sounds like the beginning of a cheesy line."

"There ain't nothing cheesy about me baby," he told her as he rubbed his lower body against hers.

Rachel gasped and then moaned as she felt him through her underwear.

"You like that?" he whispered in her ear before taking it in his mouth and making his way down her neck.

Rachel made a noise of assent and Puck laughed. "You have no idea how hot you are," he told her as he palmed a breast and took a nipple in his mouth.

Rachel arched off the bed and pushed her breast more firmly in his mouth. He released it with an audible pop and moved to the other one. "We don't want it to feel left out, do we?" he asked her when she tried to tug him up to kiss her.

She shook her head no and allowed him to continue his ministrations. When he went to move lower, Rachel found her voice again and said, "Noah, as much as I'd love you to continue your exploration, right now, I don't think I could handle it. I just want you inside me."

Once she finished saying that, Puck quickly pulled her underwear off and rid himself of his boxers. At her pointing, he found condoms in her bed side table and quickly grabbed one. He rolled it on before settling over her. He kissed her and lightly ran his hands up her thighs until he reached her center. She was already quite wet, but that didn't stop Puck from lightly caressing her.

Rachel moaned as she felt his fingers lightly graze her and bucked her hips. Puck smirked into the kiss and slipped his tongue in her mouth. At that same moment, he pressed on her clit and slipped a finger in her. Rachel gasped and broke away from him to gulp in a breath of air. Puck used the opportunity to press kisses to her throat and add a second finger. Rachel shuddered around his fingers and she could feel the beginning of her orgasm.

Before he could bring it upon her, Rachel stopped him and commanded, "Noah, please fuck me now."

Puck groaned and pressed a kiss to her lips. He reached between them and lined his dick up to her pussy. He teased her slightly, coating the head of his cock with her juices before pushing in slightly and withdrawing. He did this for a few seconds, coating himself and getting her to relax before he swiftly buried himself in her up to the hilt.

He paused for a moment to allow them both a moment to adjust to this before Rachel wiggled her hips and his control snapped. He leaned back and sat up, grabbing her hips and holding her in place as he started to piston his hips rapidly.

As Puck fucked her, Rachel started to make a keening noise and gasped every time he rammed himself home. All too quickly, Rachel felt herself building toward that orgasm and started to flutter around his length. Puck groaned and started to go faster, which she didn't think was possible at this point.

Suddenly, Rachel clenched and she felt herself come hard enough that her ears started ringing. After a few more thrusts, Puck stilled and let out a deep groan of contentment. As he was about to collapse, he pulled out of her and fell to the side on his back.

The two of them lay there for several moments trying to catch their breath. Puck got up and went into her bathroom to throw the condom away and clean himself up some before coming back to the bed and lying beside her. While he was gone, she had rolled onto her stomach and Puck drew little patterns on her back.

"So, I think this is a bit out of order. But, I would definitely like to see you again," Puck told her. "How does every day from here to eternity sound?"

Rachel laughed and looked at him. "That sounds fabulous, but I think you're getting ahead of yourself. We first have to get to tomorrow."

"See, that's where you're wrong," Puck told her as he rolled her over. "I already know how tomorrow is going to start. I'm not worried about that at all. I just want to make sure that from here on out, you and me are together."

Rachel cocked an eye brow at him and said, "Oh really, you already know how tomorrow is going to start?"

Puck nodded and moved himself on top of her. "Why don't I show you?"

Rachel nodded and gasped as she realized just what he had in mind. "Now that I think about it, that seems like a great way to start tomorrow."


End file.
